Ja Morant says he made a "bad mistake" but now realises what he has to lose following a series of poor off-court decisions leading to his eight-game NBA suspension.
The NBA announced the suspension without pay for Morant on Wednesday for carrying a gun in a Denver nightclub in an incident that the Memphis Grizzlies guard posted in an Instagram Live video earlier this month.
Morant, who has been away from the Grizzlies since the March 4 incident and underwent counselling during his absence, will receive credit for the five games he has already missed and will be eligible to return for Memphis' March 20 home game against the Dallas Mavericks.
The latest incident is the latest in a pattern of behaviour from Morant, who met with NBA commissioner Adam Silver on Wednesday after the league's damning condemnation of his "irresponsible, reckless and potentially very dangerous" conduct.
"I realise what I have to lose, and for us as a group, what we have to lose," Morant during an interview with ESPN's Jalen Rose. "It's pretty much just that being more responsible, more smarter and staying away from all the bad decisions.
"I feel like in the past we didn't know what was at stake. And now finally me having that time to realise everything, have that time alone, I realise that now."
Morant showed remorse for his actions at the nightclub, clarifying that he did not own the gun in the video, while adding that the behaviour did not represent him truly.
"It's not who I am," Morant said." I don't condone it or any type of violence, but I take full responsibility for my actions. I made a bad mistake.
"I can see the image that I painted over myself with my recent mistakes. But in the future, I'm going to show everybody who Ja really is, what I'm about and change this narrative that everybody got."
Morant has spent time away from the Grizzlies since the incident reflecting on his behaviour, including undertaking a counselling program in Florida.
"I feel mentally good that I haven't been in many years," Morant said. "I'm in a space where I'm very comfortable.
"I was constantly talking to therapists. I've been doing Reiki treatment. I've been doing anxiety breathing, different stuff to help me manage that and release all that stuff from my body.
"I made a terrible mistake being inside a club and went Live. I put myself in a bad position."
The Grizzlies have gone 3-3 in Morant's absence, sitting third in the Western Conference with a 41-27 record.
Stephen Curry's 50 points were not enough for the Golden State Warriors to avoid a ninth straight road loss going down 134-126 to the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday.
The Warriors' dreadful road record worsened to 7-27 across the season, with Kawhi Leonard top scoring for the Clippers with 30 points at Crypto.com Arena.
Curry piled on 21 points in the third quarter, shooting 20-of-28 from the field and eight-of-14 from three-point range, matching his season-high 50 points from the November 16 loss to the Phoenix Suns.
The reigning Finals MVP is the only player in the NBA to score 50-plus points in a loss multiple times this season. All other players are 18-2 in 50-point games this season.
Curry, who turned 35 earlier this week, also tied Wilt Chamberlain on seven for the most 50-point games after turning 30-years-old, moving past Michael Jordan (six).
Golden State's latest defeat comes in the first game of a five-game road trip which may define their playoffs aspirations, with the Warriors in sixth in the Western Conference at 36-34, while the Clippers are fifth on 37-33.
The Clippers claimed their fourth straight win after an 0-5 start after the All-Star break.
Leonard led the way on 10-of-19 field shooting, while Paul George added 24 points including four triples and seven assists.
Jordan Poole provided the Warriors' next best output with 19 points off the bench, while Draymond Green received his 16th technical foul of the season, meaning he will cop a one-game suspension.
Sixers clinch sixth win in a row
Joel Embiid scored 36 points with 18 rebounds as the Philadelphia 76ers continued their momentum with their sixth straight win in a 118-109 triumph over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Embiid had a charging call against him overturned with 4:12 remaining, which would have been his sixth foul, allowing him to play out the game and guide the 76ers home after the Cavs had led 96-95 in the last quarter.
James Harden added 28 points with 12 assists for Philadelphia, while Donovan Mitchell was kept to 21 points on nine-of-19 shooting, making only one-of-seven from beyond the arc.
In the Eastern Conference standings, the third-placed 76ers move to 46-22, just behind the second-placed Boston Celtics (48-22) who edged the Minnesota Timberwolves 104-102. The Cavs are fourth at 44-28.
Clutch Fox sinks Bulls on buzzer
De'Aaron Fox landed a go-ahead pull-up three-pointer with 0.7 seconds left to earn the Sacramento Kings' 117-114 victory over the Chicago Bulls.
Fox finished with 32 points on 12-of-17 shooting, making four-of-six three pointers including the game-winner under pressure from Ayo Dosunmu, after DeMar DeRozan tied the game at 114-all with a four-point play.
Domantas Sabonis managed a triple-double with 14 points, 17 rebounds and 10 assists for the Kings, who improved to 41-27 with the win in the race for second seed in the West.
Memphis Grizzlies All-Star Ja Morant has been suspended a total of eight games without pay for carrying a gun into a Denver nightclub earlier this month, the NBA announced on Wednesday.
Morant, who has been away from the Grizzlies since the March 4 incident and underwent counselling during his absence, will receive credit for the five games he has already missed and will be eligible to return for Memphis' March 20 home game against the Dallas Mavericks.
The decision was announced after Morant met with NBA commissioner Adam Silver in New York on Wednesday.
Although Morant was not charged by Colorado authorities with any crime and the NBA said its investigation could not determine whether the gun belonged to him or was brought by him into the club, Silver concluded that the 2019-20 NBA Rookie of the Year's conduct was detrimental to the league when announcing the extended penalty.
"Ja's conduct was irresponsible, reckless and potentially very dangerous," Silver said in a statement.
"It also has serious consequences given his enormous following and influence, particularly among young fans who look up to him. He has expressed sincere contrition and remorse for his behaviour.
"Ja has also made it clear to me that he has learned from this incident and that he understands his obligations and responsibility to the Memphis Grizzlies and the broader NBA community extend well beyond his play on the court."
Morant was seen holding the gun as he conducted an Instagram Live session from the nightclub hours after the Grizzlies' 113-97 loss to the Denver Nuggets on March 3.
The Grizzlies announced the next day that the two-time All-Star would be away from the team indefinitely as the NBA undertook an investigation of the incident.
The 2019 number two overall pick issued a written apology for his actions shortly afterwards and entered a counselling programme in Florida last week for what he said was to "take some time away to get help and work on learning better methods of dealing with stress and my overall well-being".
Morant, who ranks fifth in the NBA in assists per game and ninth in scoring, was previously involved in another off-court incident following a game against Indiana on January 29 that resulted in several of the star guard's acquaintances being banned by the NBA from attending Grizzlies home games.
In that event, members of Morant's group reportedly confronted representatives of the Pacers' travelling party after the game, and a red laser was pointed from an SUV believed to be carrying Morant towards Indiana players and coaches as they made their way to the team bus.
Morant is averaging 27.1 points and 8.2 assists in 53 games this season for a Memphis team who hold the second-best record in the Western Conference.
Memphis lost their first two games during Morant's current hiatus but have since won three straight, following up a 131-110 victory over defending NBA champions the Golden State Warriors on March 9 with a home-and-home sweep of Dallas.
Michael Malone suggested complacency is behind the Denver Nuggets' four-game losing streak.
The Nuggets went down 125-110 to the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday, and are now winless since March 6.
Denver are still hold a four-game lead at the top of the Western Conference, with a 46-23 record for the season, but coach Malone is far from happy.
"Right now we're just in chill mode," said Malone. "And you can't be in chill mode with 13 games to go in the season.
"We've got to try to find a way to get our swagger back. Maybe we've gotten a little soft with success.
"We've been on cruise control for so long, number one in the West since like December 15.
"I just told our players we've gotten away from who we are."
Denver never led on Tuesday after allowing 49 points in the first quarter, going on to concede at least 100 points for the fifth consecutive game. Indeed, they have conceded over 120 in each of their past three games.
"We just dug too much of a big hole and couldn't climb the mountain from there," said Nuggets guard Jamal Murray.
Toronto led 88-64 after Pascal Siakam found the net with eight minutes remaining in the third, before Denver went on a run to cut the gap to 98-92, but they struggled to maintain that momentum in the final quarter.
Malone added: "When you expend so much energy getting back in the game you have nothing left to finish."
The Nuggets remain on the road for their next four games starting with Detroit Pistons (16-54) on Thursday, before a home meeting against the NBA-leading Milwaukee Bucks (50-19) on March 26.
Giannis Antetokounmpo warned his team-mates not to get ahead of themselves after the Milwaukee Bucks became the first side to clinch a playoff spot.
The Bucks beat the Phoenix Suns 116-104 at Footprint Center on Tuesday to make it 20 wins from their past 22 games and reach 50 victories for the season.
Giannis backed up Monday's 46-point return against the Sacramento Kings with 36 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists in another convincing victory.
Milwaukee are the favourites to land the NBA title, but Antetokounmpo believes there is room for improvement.
"We're in a good place," said Antetokounmpo, whose average of 31.5 points per game this term is the fourth-best in the division. "We've got to keep on learning, staying humble."
Antetokounmpo later added on Twitter: "One game at a time. You can't skip steps."
The Bucks let a 57-48 lead slip in the fourth quarter against the Suns, who were still missing Kevin Durant, but they responded well to make it back-to-back road wins.
"We just mentioned it in the coaches' locker room to appreciate this," Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said.
"Making the playoffs in this league is hard. You should never take anything for granted."
The Bucks are back in action on Thursday with a home game against the Indiana Pacers, who are down in 12th in the Eastern Conference.
Darvin Ham confirmed the Los Angeles Lakers will not risk Anthony Davis against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.
Davis starred in a 123-108 win over his former team the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday, scoring 35 points while adding 17 rebounds and one assist.
The 30-year-old is enjoying a strong season, with his 26.1 points per game his best average since the 2019-20 campaign – his first in Los Angeles.
Davis has also stepped up in LeBron James' absence. In the eight games Lakers' talisman has missed since February 26, Davis has played seven, scoring 30 or more points on four occasions.
The Lakers are above the play-in line in the Western Conference, but they will have to face the Rockets without Davis, who Ham explained will not be risked in back-to-back games.
"He's not going to play," Ham said of Davis, who missed a large chunk of this campaign due to a stress fracture in his right foot.
"He hasn't been cleared. Even though he's been playing pain-free, we made an organisational decision, starting with our team doctors, to hold him out of back-to-backs.
"It's just one of those things where even though he's playing pain-free, it's still an active injury.
"So we have to monitor it and stick to the plan, as we always have done. And just go out there with our other guys and try to get a W and finish the trip the right way."
With a comfortable 75-40 half-time lead over the Pelicans, Ham would have ideally liked to hand Davis a rest, yet New Orleans fought back to reduce the deficit to 13 in the final quarter.
"It definitely was a thought, but obviously, that's a hell of a ballclub over there that has a lot of pride and they made their push, so having to reinsert him into the game kind of nixed any delusions of grandeur," Ham said.
While frustrated that he will be watching on from the sidelines in Houston, Davis knows it is likely for the best.
He said: "It's tough, especially because each game you want to go out and play.
"But before I even came back, it's something the doctors and the organisation discussed that they thought it would be best for me not to play back-to-backs.
"It's still a stress reaction, and we're doing all the right things to make sure that I'm ready to go and I still need that day break. Obviously it sucks."
Despite their win, the Lakers dropped from ninth to 10th in the West, due to the Oklahoma City Thunder's win over the Brooklyn Nets.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi won 75-71 victory over Southeast Missouri to advance to the NCAA tournament where they will face no.1 seed Alabama in the South Region.
The Islanders held off SEMA in the First Four matchup of no.16 seeds, having led 33-27 at half-time with Jalen Jackson top scoring with 22 points and six rebounds, while Isaac Mushila managed 15 points and 12 rebounds.
The triumph was a first-ever NCAA tournament game win for Texas, who were without guard Terrion Murdix due to a left knee injury.
SEMA had squared the game up at 64-64 with 3:07 to play but could not maintain the rage. Chris Harris top scored for the Redhawks with 23 points.
Pittsburgh also advanced via their First Four game, claiming their first victory at an NCAA tournament since 2014, getting past Mississippi State 60-59 in a see-sawing contest.
Jamarius Burton came up with a go-ahead two-point pointer with 10 seconds remaining and Pitt held on to clinch a clash with no.6 seed Iowa State in the Midwest Regional.
Shakeel Moore missed an open three-pointer to win the game for Mississippi, with D.J. Jeffries unable to convert the tip-in attempt.
Nelly Cummings top scored for the Panthers with 15 points with three rebounds and four assists, while Dashawn Davis also had 15 points with five assists for the Bulldogs.
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